Lurpak recently got in touch to ask me to come up with a recipe for their website - they wanted an alternative to the traditional Christmas cake. So I thought of my favourite boiled fruit cake recipe - the recipe is years old (I think it was originally my mum's) and I've tinkered with it, and it's a great one for using up whatever you've got in your cupboards!
For the cake in the photo, I used glacé cherries, raisins, sultanas, cranberries, apricots and mixed peel. Best of all, it's incredibly easy and all you will have to wash up afterwards is one saucepan, one wooden spoon and the cake tin! So if you've left it to the last minute and haven't time to make a traditional rich fruit cake, or can't be bothered with the necessary care and feeding involved, this is the recipe for you. I used to make it regularly during my last chef job, and it was always a big seller.
Find it here, on the Lurpak website.
I don't know why boiled fruit cakes aren't more popular, but they really seem to have gone out of fashion, despite Nigella coming up with a chocolate version. They need a revival! Have you ever made one?
I've never made a boiled fruit cake, but will certainly give it a try. Your recipe sounds (and looks) delicious, and not too complicated - perfect.
ReplyDeleteSadly I've never made a boiled fruit cake :( My ex didn't like dried fruit so was never worth baking one but now he has gone...yey boiled fruit cake is on the list! Love fruit cake!
ReplyDeleteYours look so jam packed with fruit, delicious!
I have never made a fruit cake before but with the festive season approaching i think I may have to give it ago! thanks for the recipe!
ReplyDeleteI've never made a boiled fruit cake either. I think I'll give your recipe a go though.
ReplyDeleteThis recipe's just disappeared from the Lurpak website! I've been making one every week for the last few months as a post parkrun treat, and it never occured to me to write the recipe down. I'm pretty sure I know what I'm doing, but could you confirm the amounts of butter and sugar please?
ReplyDeletePls post the ingredients..it's not there I'm lurkap site
ReplyDeleteLurpak sent me the recipe:
ReplyDeleteLurpak® Boiled Fruit CakeTime: 90 mins Serves:6 Ingredients:
150g SR flour
150g plain flour
1 tsp. bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp. mixed spice
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
200g light brown sugar or light muscovado sugar
150g Lurpak® diced
600g dried fruit, made up of whatever you like or whatever you have in your cupboards e.g raisins
50g chopped unsalted nuts (optional)150ml orange juice
100ml water (or use 250ml water and leave out the orange juice)
2 medium free range eggs
3 tsp. apricot jam
A few drops of lemon juice
Preparation: Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Grease and flour a 20cm round deep cake tin, preferably with a loose bottom. Place the dried fruit, spices, bicarbonate of soda, butter, sugar, orange juice and water in a large saucepan. Heat while stirring with a wooden spoon until the Lurpak® has melted, bring to the boil and keep boiling for three minutes. Take the pan off the heat and leave to cool.
Crack the two eggs into the saucepan and beat them into the rest of the mixture. Stir in the flour and mix it all together (no need to fold it in gently – just give it a good mix with the wooden spoon and make sure there are no lumps of flour left). Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for approximately 1 hour 20 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Check after an hour and if it looks like the top is browning too much, just cover it with some foil for the rest of the cooking time. Stand the cake, still in its tin, on a wire rack to cool completely before turning out.When the cake has cooled, heat the apricot jam with a few drops of lemon juice to thin it out (20 seconds in the microwave will do the trick). Use a pastry brush to spread the jam over the entire surface of the cake to give it a lovely glaze